Jon for President!!

Gay Marriage

If you are a presidential candidate, you’re supposed to have a position about gay marriage or no one will vote for you. How sad. I
would much rather be elected on the basis of my ability to build consensus or my integrity or my creative approach to world problems or my approachableness or anything but the current litmus test for
electoral viability. This is one of the reasons I hate politics. People will judge you by one (and only one) criteria, and completely pass over whatever else you may have accomplished or plan to do.
Alas.

Well, I do have a position on gay marriage, but it’s not the one you will expect. People will look at the over-the-top Christian fanatic that I indeed am and think, “Oh, of course he’s against gay
marriage.” Shame on you for assuming there are only two sides to an issue. Indeed shame on you for forcing the world to cast a yes or no vote in favor or against, so that one may be properly labeled
a Homophobe or a Pervert.But that’s politics, isn’t it? Find an enemy or create one, and then marshal forces to oppose them. That’s how labor organizers work. Instead of saying that you
should have a union because it is the nature of businesses to be profit centered or customer centered to the neglect of the employees, they will instead tell you, “They’re cheating you. Do something
about it!” (By the way, my cure for unions is ease of finding employment. If it is easy to find another job, employers are forced to create desirable conditions in order to keep employees. How do we
achieve that? That will be another article. But I digress.)

Actually, I’m not digressing. The topic of gay marriage is a red herring, a political maneuver, a diversion from the real issue of the normalization of
homosexuality. And the gay rights side is to be congratulated for polarizing the media on gay marriage and civil rights, and away from the issue of homosexuality. As in any political contest, if one
can divert attention from the core issue where one is weaker and attract attention to an arena where one is stronger, then the momentum gained will appear to the public to be victory, and victory
implies truth.

Homosexuality is a visceral issue that invites extremism. And altho I am extreme about a number of things, I can’t seem to find it in me to be ‘extreme’ about
homosexuality. Yes, as a Christian, I believe homosexuality is a sin; the Bible is reasonably clear about this. But wow, there are so many more egregious sins that need combating, why do I want to
burn up so much energy about what I view as a minor issue. (Are you hairs bristling yet? Just wait.)

Promiscuous sex is far more degrading (and dangerous) than attraction to the same sex.Pornographyis positively a plague on society. Entertainment choices (movies, TV, and video games) that titillate (or eviscerate) do nothing but numb and enslave our souls. For
these things will I get up on my human sexuality soapbox and rail against their continued acceptance. But not homosexuality.

If someone says they’re gay, so be it. There are societal conventions (civil rights) in place that will allow such a one to live and work in peace. That this is not
currently so is because these conventions are not fairly enforced. And I’m sorry to say as long as there’s the ‘ugh’ factor* for the majority of society, these conventions may never ultimately be
enforced fairly. And if elected, I will work towards the impartial, comprehensive enforcement of these conventions. But I pray that gay marriage will never become one of those conventions, for
if it does, I may have to resign as your president.

But what if someone doesn’t want to be gay? Can one choose, or is choice denied them? To be gay was never a choice, or at least not a choice that was offered
fairly. But can one choose to change? Here, at last, is the final battleground for social change. Is our destiny set, or has the story yet to be written?

* What’s the “ugh” factor? What’s the first thing
that comes to your mind when I ask, “How would you like to kiss a horse?” It’s kind of that way for everybody. If I ask a heterosexual man to kiss another man, “ugh” is the majority reaction. Ditto
that for a homosexual man kissing a
woman.